Rules Committee OKs Four Bills

The Senate Rules and Judiciary Committee voted four measures to the full Senate for further consideration at its next meeting.

The action took place Thursday.

Sen. Tregenza A. Roach introduced the bill addressing how a state of emergency is extended in the territory. Presently an extension is made by the governor. The bill would allow the Legislature to be part of that decision-making process.

Sen. Nereida Rivera O’Reilly spoke to a bill that would expand treatments optometrists could provide. Specifically, the act would allow optometrists to prescribe eye drops for the treatment of glaucoma. She emphasized the act did not allow optometrists to perform surgery.

Rivera-O’Reilly also introduced a bill to define urgent-care facilities and and to exempt urgent-care facilities from needing a certificate of need. She is co-sponsor of the bill with Sen. Kurt Vialet. She said the bill would stimulate the competition for such facilities on the islands and is in line with what has already been done in most states.

Sen. Janella K. Sarauw called a resolution she sponsored to honor and commend the Family Resource Center for its services to victims and families in the territory was a “no brainer.” She said the center has offered critical services to members of the community who have been “battered and abused.”

Support the VI Source

Unlike many news organizations, we haven't put up a paywall - we want to keep our journalism as open as we can. Our sites are more popular than ever, but advertising revenues are falling - so you can see why we could use your help. Our independent journalism costs time, money and hard work to keep you informed, but we do it because we believe that it matters. If everybody who appreciates our reporting efforts were to help fund it for as little as $1, our future would be much more secure. Thanks in advance for your support!

FROM FACEBOOK

Both Limetree Bay’s announcement and a statement from Government House suggest this means the refinery will restart. Yet neither mentions the transfer of $70 million to the V.I. government that is to take place when the final contracts for operating a restarted refinery are closed. ... See MoreSee Less

Since 1999 the Virgin Islands Source – the U.S. Virgin Islands ONLY on-line only newspaper of general circulation – has been providing the community with up-to-the-minute, reliable, accurate, and FAIR news and information.